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Labor Day weekend and knitting stuff

I've taken a 2 month hiatus from blogging but I have been doing some knitting. Also, some knitsibs and I went on a knitting retreat at The Cabin again and I took a little 3 day trip to Jacksonville over Labor Day weekend to visit family.

Had some good beach time on Saturday morning, temp was great, the water looked beautiful. It was a little rough, especially on my knees, but the water felt great. Here are a few pics:

Now on to some knitting:

This is my version of the Kicking Bag that I mentioned in a previous post. The concept is a blanket that you can put around the baby while she's napping and as her legs kick, the blanket doesn't come off. This one is knit in Sirdar's Baby Bamboo and knit in the round. The ribbing is done in the mock cable stitch and it's nice and stretchy.

I've also started the 10-Stitch Blanket by Frankie Brown. The beginning of the pattern is a little fiddly but once you get past the first few corners, it's a joy to work. You only have 10 stitches on your needles at any time so you never have to worry about that "let me finish one more row".

I'm working this in Mini-Mochi in pastel colors to make a napping size baby blanket, not a full size crib blanket. Knitting with US 4's.

I'm also working on a 10-stitch blanket for me, probably something for the couch or recliner. Also done in Mini Mochi with a red/fuschia/purple base. It didn't photograph well because of the red, but you get the idea.

I purchased some wonderful Lisa Souza silk at Stitches South and have been wondering what to make with it. I decided on the Feather and Fan scarf. It's knit with a multiple of 18 + 4 for the garter edging. I'm knitting on US Size 8.

I forgot to put the ruler in the picture but the width of the scarf is 6 1/2 inches. It feels glorious to the touch!

I've also started a Capelet knit with a gorgeous red Nashua Handknits. Since red doesn't photograph well, I didn't take a picture of it. Maybe after it's complete, I'll try it.

On a personal note, for the past 4-5 years, I have had severe pains in both knees. I finally went to an orthopedist a couple of weeks ago and xrays revealed that I had absolutely no cartilage left in either knee. The ortho referred me to a joint replacement specialist. Before I left the ortho, he gave me a cortisone shot in each knee. After the shot, the knee pain was virtually gone, I had no idea it would be that great. The joint replacement specialist said I have severe osteoarthritis. My options are surgery or manage the pain. He recommended that I wait as long as possible for surgery, so I have decided to wait and to manage the pain with cortisone shots and Aleve. I can still feel the benefits of the original cortisone shots but it's not as good as it was, so I will definitely be monitoring it.

Comments

I have had knee surgery to fix a lack of cartilage in my knees, and let me just tell you... be careful of the Aleve-plus-cortisone routine. Aleve can seriously damage your kidneys if taken for too long of a period. My doctor ended up putting me on Naproxen and it was much better. But you're right to delay surgery- knee surgery plus therapy takes a long time to get over.

What a nice post update! Love the new blog skin too. Looks like mine! LOL

Aren't Lisa's yarns wonderful! I have never met her, but certainly have ordered lots of stuff from her. Love the blankies....and the feather and fan scarf...very pretty.

Good luck with the knees. I have a friend who just had replacements, as has my mom. My husband is in the waiting mode. My mom had a great recovery from her knees, but she actually waited too long for one of them. So, just keep in touch with your doctors....they should give you correct guidance. Hope you get along ok.